Not to be anti-climactic, but Bradley Hallman could have just slept in today, joined the weigh in show with an empty bag and still enjoyed a 6-figure payday and the huge championship trophy to top off his first FLW Tour tournament.

Such was the nature of Hallman’s commanding performance over the course of 4 difficult days that featured changing weather and very few big fish. Bunches of small bass paraded across stage, unseen and uncelebrated, packed tightly with a few of their friends in weigh in bags as angler after angler settled for mediocrity.

Not Hallman. “I came down here from the jump knowing this was going to be a flippin’ tournament, as far as making the Top 10. It might be won some other way, but 5 out of the top 10 guys are going to be flippin’.”

Indeed, there are always other ways to catch fish. None of them bear mentioning this week.

With that mindset the former Bassmaster Elite Series Pro scoured the big lake, which he admitted he did not know very well, during practice. “I had never seen Harney Pond, never seen the Monkey Box. I stopped at some place called S&D or something that was supposed to have some fish (perhaps he meant ‘J&S’?). Finally, I ended up in South Bay and flipped into a bush – wait, I know, they’re called reed heads down here,” chuckled the Oklahoman, showing a bit of his flippin’ roots which are planted firmly in the soiled waters of his home state.

He found what he liked on the south end of the inland ocean. He stuck with his area as winds changed the water color and eventually pushed another foot or so of water beneath the mats from which Hallman pulled his fish. Throughout practice and the entire tournament Hallman simply swung the big weight on short line and long rod in his ‘bushes’ on the south end.

His single-minded tenacity was rewarded with the 2 biggest sacks of the derby during the first 2 rounds. He built a lead that lasted through today’s final weigh in during which the ‘Hot Seat’ on stage stayed empty. After Alex Davis weighed-in, Hallman still had an 8-pound lead with nobody left to challenge it.

Hallman totaled 71 pounds, 2 ounces over four days. His numbers day-by-day:  25-0 on Day 1, followed by 25-7, then 14-3 and a final weight of 6-8 on only two fish today.

His 6-2 effort today was heavier than some 5-fish limits other pros brought in.

Shin Fukae had five that weighed 5-1. The likeable pro from Japan-by-way-of-Texas joked that Hallman had an unfair advantage – he’s too tall. Fukae admitted that he likes to use small worms on a dropshot rig but this week he had to flip with a 7’11” rod. A stick that size would have the leverage on Fukae, not the other way around as works for Hallman who stands way north of the 6-foot mark.

Davis had five fish that at 5 pounds, 3 ounces also weighed less than Hallman’s pair. He was happy to have them since at 1 o’clock his livewell was empty. He had 10 bites during the last hour. They were just small. He wondered where the 4-pounders live in Okeechobee. He noted that the fish this week were either a foot long or as long as long as your arm.

Davis points out that Guntersville Lake is full of 4-pounders. And he knows where they live. Call him when you want to catch some. He made 30-grand this week in South Florida but his bread is mostly buttered by guide’s fees. And Guntersville should get hot soon!

Here’s how the Top 10 shook out today:

1        BRADLEY HALLMAN, NORMAN, OK  71 – 2 (16)      $100,000

2        ALEX DAVIS, ALBERTVILLE, AL  56 – 4 (20) $30,000

3        CHRIS JOHNSTON, PETERBOROUGH, ON   56 – 3 (19)       $25,000

4        MICHAEL NEAL, DAYTON, TN  55 – 15 (20)     $20,000

5        SHINICHI FUKAE, PALESTINE, TX  52 – 9 (20)          $19,000

6        BRANDON MCMILLAN, CLEWISTON, FL  51 – 4 (20)         $18,000

7        JOSHUA WEAVER, MACON, GA   50 – 5 (20)    $17,000

8        CLARK REEHM, HUNTINGTON, TX   48 – 8 (20)       $16,000

9        CHARLIE WEYER, WEST HILLS, CA   47 – 11 (18)     $15,000

10      BILLY SHELTON III, LA CROSSE,   44 – 6 (17) $14,500